Conservation issues presented to the World Heritage Committee in 2005

Following the conclusions of the World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS evaluation mission in May 2004, the Committee, in its Decision 28 COM 15A.14, encouraged the State Party to implement a number of measures that would enable the property to be removed from the List of World Heritage in Danger, in 2007. These measures included setting up a national mechanism for cultural heritage protection, the establishment of a buffer zone around the property, an update of the management plan, and the continuation of conservation actions for the protection of the last vestiges of mud-brick construction. The Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee visited the site in November 2004 to evaluate the state of conservation, and was informed of the preparation of the cultural heritage law that would be submitted to the Parliament for vote. He seized the opportunity of this visit to remind the Benin authorities of the urgent need to implement the measures that had been recommended by the Committee, and reported on his visit to the President of the Republic of Benin.

On 10 March 2005, the State Party submitted a request for international assistance to implement the recommendations of the Committee’s Decision 28 COM 15A.14. The requested financial assistance will enable the State Party to carry out the delimitation of the buffer zone and to sign a municipal decree regulating development and construction around the property, to evaluate the management plan which had expired and to organise a technical expert mission. This technical mission, composed of specialists of mud-brick heritage conservation, will develop the future conservation project for the last vestiges of mud-brick construction. The State Party intends to invite the Getty Conservation Institute, CRATerre-EAG and the World Heritage Centre to participate in this mission.

Furthermore, from 5 to 13 April 2005, the World Heritage Centre organised a technical assistance mission in the framework of the cooperation agreement between Italy and UNESCO, aimed at alleviating the site from its endangered situation. The objective of this mission was to assist the State Party in developing a project for the promotion of sustainable tourism, with a view to increasing income and financing some of the costs for the maintenance and conservation work. The project proposal will be submitted to different funding institutions.

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The threats indicated are listed in alphabetical order; their order does not constitute a classification according to the importance of their impact on the property.
Furthermore, they are presented irrespective of the type of threat faced by the property, i.e. with specific and proven imminent danger (“ascertained danger”) or with threats which could have deleterious effects on the property’s Outstanding Universal Value (“potential danger”).